Michael Archuleta appeals from an order of the United States District Court for
the District of New Mexico denying his petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
The issue on appeal is whether his due process rights were violated by the
introduction at his trial of testimony concerning a show-up identification in
which he was shown to witnesses while he was handcuffed and seated in a
police car and the introduction of a subsequent in-court identification by those
witnesses. We conclude that his due process rights were not violated.
Therefore, we affirm the district court's denial of habeas corpus relief.

2

In September 1985, petitioner was convicted by a jury of automobile burglary
and larceny under $100.00 for breaking into a van and taking a bag full of
quarters. He was sentenced to a total of two years in prison for the crimes. His
sentence subsequently was increased to eight years after it was determined that
he was an habitual offender. He appealed to the New Mexico Court of Appeals,
which affirmed his conviction. The New Mexico Supreme Court denied

certiorari. He then filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the United
States District Court for the District of New Mexico claiming that he had been
subjected to an illegal search and seizure, that there was lack of probable cause
for the arrest, and that the show-up identification was improper. The district
court dismissed the petition pursuant to 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2254, adopting the
findings of a United States magistrate.
3

The relevant undisputed facts leading to petitioner's conviction are as follows.
Philip Madrid III, and his father, Philip Madrid, Jr., operated a coin machine
business in Albuquerque, New Mexico. On October 10, 1984, after completing
their morning rounds, the Madrids were eating breakfast in a restaurant. Madrid
III looked out the window of the restaurant and saw a man and a woman near
the Madrids' van, in which the Madrids had left approximately $60.00 in
quarters in a bank bag. Madrid III saw the man break the window of the van
with a tire iron and reach into the van.

4

The Madrids then ran out of the restaurant and yelled at the man and the
woman. Madrid III saw the face of the man and noticed that he had a bank bag
tucked in his belt. Madrid III then chased the man and stopped the car in which
the man was trying to escape. When the man got out of the car, Madrid III had
an unobstructed view of him from about ten feet away and looked straight into
his face. Madrid III then pursued the man on foot for about 500 yards,
observing his build and clothing until he lost him in a trailer park. In total,
Madrid III was able to observe the man for approximately two minutes.

5

When the police arrived at the scene of the crime, the Madrids gave them a
description of the man who had broken into the van. Madrid III described him
as approximately 5'9" tall, a Spanish male with dark hair and a mustache,
wearing a black t-shirt with some type of emblem on it and blue jeans. Madrid,
Jr. gave the police a similar description, although he estimated that the man was
approximately 5'7" tall.

6

Based on the Madrids' description of the thief, the police detained Archuleta
and brought him back to the scene of the crime approximately thirty minutes
after the incident. The police displayed Archuleta to the Madrids while he was
handcuffed and seated in the back seat of a police car, and the Madrids
positively identified him as the perpetrator.

7

Before petitioner's trial, Archuleta's trial attorney moved to suppress any
testimony concerning the show-up identification and any in-court identification
by the Madrids. She argued that displaying Archuleta in a show-up

identification while handcuffed in a police car among uniformed police officers
was so suggestive that introduction of evidence of it would violate Archuleta's
due process rights. She also argued that the suggestive show-up tainted any
subsequent identification by the Madrids. The state conceded that the show-up
was suggestive but argued that in the circumstances of this case it was reliable.
The trial court admitted testimony regarding the show-up identification, and
both Madrid III and his father made positive identifications of Archuleta at the
trial. Archuleta contends that the introduction of this evidence violated his due
process rights.
8

Initially, we must determine the appropriate standard of review. The Supreme
Court has held that the ultimate conclusion of the constitutionality of
identification procedures is a mixed question of law and fact and, as such, is
subject to plenary review. Sumner v. Mata, 455 U.S. 591, 597, 102 S.Ct. 1303,
1306, 71 L.Ed.2d 480 (1982). Therefore, we review the conclusion that
Archuleta's due process rights were not violated de novo. Nevertheless, as
discussed below, there are a number of factual determinations made by the state
trial court which underlie this conclusion.1 These factual findings are entitled to
a presumption of correctness under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2254(d). Sumner v. Mata,
449 U.S. 539, 546-47, 101 S.Ct. 764, 768-69, 66 L.Ed.2d 722 (1981).2

9

In examining the constitutionality of an identification procedure, a court must
address two issues. The first issue is whether the identification procedure is
unnecessarily suggestive. In this case the district court found, and the state has
conceded, that the show-up procedure was unnecessarily suggestive.

10

Even if an identification procedure is suggestive, the introduction of the
identification evidence does not necessarily violate a defendant's due process
rights. United States v. Williams, 605 F.2d 495, 498 (10th Cir.), cert. denied,
444 U.S. 932, 100 S.Ct. 276, 62 L.Ed.2d 189 (1979). The central inquiry is
"whether under the totality of the circumstances the identification was reliable."
Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188, 199, 93 S.Ct. 375, 382, 34 L.Ed.2d 401 (1972).
See also Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98, 114, 97 S.Ct. 2243, 2253, 53
L.Ed.2d 140 (1977) ("reliability is the linchpin in determining the admissibility
of identification testimony").

11

The Supreme Court has set forth five factors to be considered when evaluating
the reliability of identification procedures:

12

1. The opportunity of the witness to view the criminal at the time of the crime;

13

2. The witness' degree of attention;

14

3. The accuracy of the witness' prior description of the criminal;

15

4. The level of certainty demonstrated by the witness at the confrontation; and

16

5. The length of time between the crime and the confrontation.

17

Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188, 199-200, 93 S.Ct. 375, 382-83, 34 L.Ed.2d 401
(1972). See also Manson v. Brathwaite, 432 U.S. 98, 97 S.Ct. 2243, 53 L.Ed.2d
140 (1977). This court must balance these five factors against the "corruptive
effect" of the identification procedures in order to determine whether the
identification testimony should have been suppressed. Manson, 432 U.S. at
114, 97 S.Ct. at 2253; United States v. Thurston, 771 F.2d 449, 453 (10th
Cir.1985).

18

An examination of the five factors in this case reveals that the identification
procedure did not create a "very substantial likelihood of ... misidentification,"
Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. at 198, 93 S.Ct. at 381 (quotingSimmons v. United
States, 390 U.S. 377, 384, 88 S.Ct. 967, 971, 19 L.Ed.2d 1247 (1968)), and
therefore did not violate petitioner's due process rights.

19

First, the Madrids had ample opportunity to view the criminal at the time of the
crime. Madrid III saw him through the restaurant window, confronted him faceto-face twice, and observed his features and build while chasing him. The total
observation time was about two minutes. This is about the same amount of time
that was held sufficient in Manson (two to three minutes). See also O'Brien v.
Wainwright, 738 F.2d 1139, 1141 (11th Cir.1984) (close-up view for seconds
was sufficient), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1162, 105 S.Ct. 918, 83 L.Ed.2d 931
(1985); United States v. Burnette, 698 F.2d 1038, 1046 (9th Cir.) (twelve
seconds of unobstructed observation at close range was sufficient), cert.
denied, 461 U.S. 936, 103 S.Ct. 2106, 77 L.Ed.2d 312 (1983). Although
Madrid, Jr.'s observation of the criminal was not as extensive, he testified that
he had two brief, unobstructed views of the criminal's features, build, and
clothing from thirty to forty feet away. Also, his description of the criminal was
substantially similar to his son's description.

20

Second, both Madrid III and his father testified that their attention was focused
on the criminal. Their ability to recall a number of descriptive details supports
this testimony. The state trial court specifically found that Madrid III's attention

was "totally focused" on the perpetrator.
21

Third, as the state trial court found, the Madrids' description of Archuleta was
accurate. They accurately described him as a Spanish male with dark hair and a
mustache, wearing a black t-shirt with an emblem and blue jeans. While it is
true that they both overestimated his height and did not tell the police about his
tattoos, these appear to be minor errors.

22

Fourth, the Madrids were very certain when they initially identified Archuleta
as the criminal and when they testified at trial. Their identification has been
unequivocal at all times.

23

Fifth, the Madrids identified Archuleta approximately thirty minutes after the
crime. This is a very short interval of time, which adds to the reliability of the
identification. This interval is much shorter than the seven months inNeil and
the two days in Manson, which the Supreme Court held were not too long. See
also United States v. Shoels, 685 F.2d 379, 385 (10th Cir.1982) (two month
interval was not a substantial amount of time which would impede
identification), cert. denied, 462 U.S. 1134, 103 S.Ct. 3117, 77 L.Ed.2d 1370
(1983); Lavernia v. Lynaugh, 845 F.2d 493, 500 (5th Cir.1988) (identification
over a year after crime was reliable); United States v. Wilson, 787 F.2d 375,
386 (8th Cir.) (four months was not too long), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 857, 107
S.Ct. 197, 93 L.Ed.2d 129 (1986); United States v. Burke, 738 F.2d 1225, 1229
(11th Cir.1984) (two months).

24

We conclude that all five factors support the reliability of the identification in
this case and outweigh the suggestiveness of the identification procedure.
Because the "totality of the circumstances" strongly indicates that the
identification was reliable, we agree with the district court that the admission of
the identification evidence did not deprive petitioner of due process.

25

AFFIRMED.

1

On the motion to suppress the identification testimony, the state trial judge
specifically found that Madrid III had at least two face-to-face opportunities to
view petitioner prior to the challenged show-up; that Madrid III's attention was
"totally focused" on petitioner during the above face-to-face confrontations;
that Madrid III's original identification was accurate; and, that the show-up
occurred approximately thirty minutes after the break-in. Because petitioner has
failed to establish by convincing evidence that these determinations are

Besides relying on the factual findings of the state trial court, the United States
magistrate below reviewed the trial record and made the following factual
findings:
Mr. Madrid III identified Petitioner at the show-up with a high degree of
certainty.... Mr. Madrid Jr. had two brief un-obstructed views in broad daylight
of Petitioner's features, clothing and stature from distances of approximately
forty and thirty feet; that Mr. Madrid Jr.'s attention was focused on Petitioner at
the time Mr. Madrid Jr. observed Petitioner immediately after the break-in; that
Mr. Madrid Jr. unhesitatingly identified Petitioner at the show-up based on
Petitioner's distinctive t-shirt and facial characteristics; and, that the show-up
occurred approximately thirty minutes after the break-in....
The magistrate's factual findings are not entitled to the statutory presumption of
correctness under section 2254(d). To the extent that they are based on live
testimony of witnesses, the "clearly erroneous" standard applies. To the extent
that the findings are based merely on the magistrate's review of the state record,
the clearly erroneous standard does not apply with full force. See Castleberry v.
Alford, 666 F.2d 1338, 1342 n. 2 (10th Cir.1981). Because we find that the
magistrate's findings were based on its review of the trial record rather than on
new testimony, we have conducted our own independent review of the record
on these points.